The man who has accused ex-Manchester United manager David Moyes of attacking him has alleged that he grabbed him around the neck and threw him to the floor during an altercation outside a wine bar.

Builder Josh Gillibrand, 23, told The Sun he thought he was going to die when the sacked United boss allegedly attacked him at the Emporium bar in Clitheroe, Lancashire, on Wednesday evening.

Mr Gillibrand, who was drinking with friend Dan Houlker and was treated in hospital for concussion and a bloody nose after the alleged incident, said: "It was a total surprise. He grabbed me round the neck and struck me in the back of the head.

"I ended up face-down on the floor. I felt like I was going to die. There were tables flying everywhere and glass all over the place."

It is understood Moyes, 51, had been socialising with his friend, Blackburn Rovers managing director Derek Shaw, a local businessman in the Ribble Valley who was on the board at Preston North End when Scotsman Moyes was in charge at Deepdale.

Witnesses claimed Moyes was abused by a group of drunken young men shortly before he entered the bar. Mr Gillibrand, from nearby Dutton, denied that he or his friend were involved in the abuse.

Police are investigating the allegation and a spokesman said officers had spoken with "a number of people" to establish the circumstances.

The police spokesman said: "There are a number of differing accounts which we need to work through to try to establish exactly what has happened. No-one has been arrested at this stage."

It is believed that police are viewing CCTV footage to try and shed further light on the incident.

Moyes was dismissed by Manchester United last month following a mediocre season after he replaced the retiring Sir Alex Ferguson.

He was linked yesterday with the top job at Celtic after Neil Lennon quit the Scottish champions.